After a successful campaign with the New York Yankees, superstar Juan Soto and his agent Scott Boras are testing the free-agent market in search of the biggest pot of gold they can find. As expected, New York Mets owner Steve Cohen is throwing his hat in the ring.
Cohen will meet Soto and Boras in Southern California via The New York Post's Mike Puma.
“With it appearing more and more the free-agent slugger is a priority for the team this offseason, Mets owner Steve Cohen plans to travel to Southern California next week to meet with Soto and his agent Scott Boras, according to industry sources,” Puma said.
While the Yankees still want to retain him, they may not find a meeting necessary.
“Several other owners are expected to meet with Boras and Soto in the coming weeks,” Puma continued. “It’s unclear if that includes [Yankees owner] Hal Steinbrenner — Yankees GM Brian Cashman recently said it’s possible Soto’s familiarity with the organization from last season might preclude a meeting.”
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Soto's year with the Yankees was almost perfect, as he hit .288 with 41 homers, 109 RBI, and a .989 OPS in the regular season before anchoring them to a pennant. However, the 26-year-old will listen to all offers before deciding his next move, via ESPN's Jesse Rogers.
“Due to the volume of interest and Juan's desire to hear [from teams], I can't put a timeframe on it, but it's going to be a very thorough process for him,” Boras said. “He wants to meet people personally. He wants to talk with them. He wants to hear from them.”
Cohen, whose net worth is $21.3 billion, won't be short of cash to offer. Additionally, though, the hedge-fund manager can sell Soto on winning, as the Mets lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games in the NLCS, while the Yankees lost to them in five in the World Series.
“He wants ownership that's going to support that they are going win annually,” Boras continued. “Owners want to meet with Juan and sit down and talk with him about what they're going to provide for their franchise short term and long term.”
While other teams are in the mix, the Soto sweepstakes will likely come down to a bidding war between Steinbrenner and Cohen. The Mets, though, must also decide if they want to keep star first baseman Pete Alonso, and it would be hard to have both players under the luxury tax.
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